James Earl Ray, a fugitive from the Missouri State Penitentiary, was arrested on June 8, 1968, in London at Heathrow Airport, extradited to the United States, and charged with the crime. On March 10, 1969, Ray entered a plea of guilty and was sentenced to 99 years in the Tennessee State Penitentiary.[1] Ray later made many attempts to withdraw his guilty plea and be tried by a jury, but was unsuccessful; he died in prison on April 23, 1998, at the age of 70.[2]

Background

King on death

King received frequent death threats due to his prominence in the Civil Rights Movement. He had confronted the risk of death and made that recognition part of his philosophy. He taught that murder could not stop the struggle for equal rights. After the assassination of U.S. President John F. Kennedy in 1963 Dr. King told his wife, Coretta, "This is what is going to happen to me also. I keep telling you, this is a sick society.":[3][4]

Memphis

King traveled to Memphis, Tennessee, in support of striking African American city sanitation workers. The workers had staged a walkout on February 11, 1968, to protest unequal wages and working conditions imposed by then-mayor Henry Loeb. At the time, Memphis paid black workers significantly lower wages than whites. Several sanitation workers had been killed on the job due to unsafe working conditions. In addition, unlike white workers, black workers received no pay if they stayed home during bad weather; consequently, most black people were compelled to work even in driving rain and snow storms.[5][6][7]

On April 3, King returned to Memphis to address a gathering at the Mason Temple (World Headquarters of the Church of God in Christ). His airline flight to Memphis was delayed by a bomb threat against his plane but he made his planned speech.[8][9] King delivered the last speech of his life, now known as the "I've Been to the Mountaintop" address. As he neared the close, he referred to the bomb threat:

And then I got to Memphis. And some began to say the threats... or talk about the threats that were out. What would happen to me from some of our sick white brothers?

Well, I don't know what will happen now. We've got some difficult days ahead. But it doesn't matter with me now. Because I've been to the mountaintop. [applause] And I don't mind. Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do God's will. And He's allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I've looked over. And I've seen the promised land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the promised land! [applause] And so I'm happy, tonight. I'm not worried about anything. I'm not fearing any man. My eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord![10]

On Thursday, April 4, 1968, King was staying in room 306 at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis. The motel was owned by businessman Walter Bailey and named after his wife. Reverend Ralph David Abernathy, a colleague and friend, later told the House Select Committee on Assassinations that he and King had stayed in room 306 at the Lorraine Motel so often that it was known as the "King-Abernathy Suite".[11]

King had gone out onto the balcony and was standing near his room when he was struck at 6:01 p.m., by a single .30-06 bullet fired from a Remington Model 760.[13] The bullet entered through King's right cheek, breaking his jaw and several vertebrae as it traveled down his spinal cord, severing his jugular vein and major arteries in the process, before lodging in his shoulder. The force of the shot ripped off King's necktie. King fell violently backward onto the balcony, unconscious.

Shortly after the shot was fired, witnesses saw a man (believed to be Ray) fleeing from a rooming house across the street from the Lorraine Motel. Ray had been renting a room there. Police found a package dumped close to the site, which included a rifle and binoculars, both marked with Ray's fingerprints. Ray had purchased the rifle under an alias six days earlier. A worldwide manhunt was triggered, which culminated in the arrest of Ray at London Heathrow Airport two months later.[14]

At the time, Abernathy heard the shot from inside the motel room and ran to the balcony to find King on the deck, bleeding profusely from the wound in his cheek.[13][15]Andrew Young, a colleague from the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), first believed King was dead, but found he still had a pulse.[16]

King was rushed to St. Joseph's Hospital, where doctors opened his chest and performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation. He never regained consciousness and was pronounced dead at 7:05 p.m. According to Taylor Branch, King's autopsy revealed that his heart was in the condition of a 60-year-old man, which Branch attributed to the stress of King's 13 years in the Civil Rights Movement.[17]

Responses

Coretta Scott King

Mrs King had difficulty settling her children with the news that their father was deceased. She received a large number of telegrams, including one from Lee Harvey Oswald's mother, which she regarded as the one that touched her the most.[18]

Within the movement

For some, King's assassination meant the end of the strategy of nonviolence.[19] Others in the movement reaffirmed the need to carry on King's work. Leaders within the SCLC confirmed that they would carry on the Poor People's Campaign that year despite his loss.[20] Some black leaders argued the need to continue King's tradition of nonviolence.[19]

Robert F. Kennedy speech

That night New York Senator Robert F. Kennedy, running to gain the presidential nomination to represent the Democratic Party, spoke about the assassination. Kennedy had spoken earlier that day in Indiana[21] and learned about the shooting before boarding a plane to Indianapolis. He had a last speech scheduled there, in a predominantly black neighborhood of the city. His press secretary Frank Mankiewicz suggested that he ask the audience to pray for the King family and to follow King's practice of nonviolence.[22] The men did not learn that King had died until they landed in Indianapolis.

Mankiewicz and speechwriter Adam Walinsky drafted notes for Kennedy's use, but he refused them, using some he likely had written during the ride to the site.[23] The Chief of Police in Indianapolis advised Kennedy that he could not provide protection and was worried he would be at risk in talking about the death of the revered leader.[24] Kennedy decided to go ahead. Standing on a flatbed truck, Kennedy spoke for four minutes and fifty-seven seconds.[25]

He was the first to tell the audience that King had died; some of the attendees screamed and wailed in grief. Several of Kennedy's aides were even worried that the delivery of this information would result in a riot.[26] When the audience quieted, Kennedy acknowledged that many would be filled with anger. He said: "For those of you who are black and are tempted to fill with—be filled with hatred and mistrust of the injustice of such an act, against all white people, I would only say that I can also feel in my own heart the same kind of feeling. I had a member of my family killed, but he was killed by a white man." These remarks surprised his aides, who had never heard him speak publicly of his brother John F. Kennedy's death.[27] Kennedy said that the country had to make an effort to "go beyond these rather difficult times", and quoted a poem by the Greek playwright Aeschylus, "Even in our sleep, pain which cannot forget falls drop by drop upon the heart until, in our own despair, against our will, comes wisdom through the awful grace of God." In conclusion, Kennedy said that the country needed and wanted unity between blacks and whites, and asked the audience members to pray for the King family and the country, quoting the Greeks again.

His speech was credited in part with preventing post-assassination rioting in Indianapolis, on a night where such events broke out in major cities across the country.[28] It is widely considered one of the greatest speeches in American history.[29]

Riots

Colleagues of Dr. King in the Civil Rights Movement called for a nonviolent response to the assassination, to honor his most deeply held beliefs. James Farmer, Jr., said:

Dr. King would be greatly distressed to find that his blood had triggered off bloodshed and disorder... I think instead the nation should be quiet; black and white, and we should be in a prayerful mood, which would be in keeping with his life. We should make that kind of dedication and commitment to the goals which his life served to solving the domestic problems. That's the memorial, that's the kind of memorial we should build for him. It's just not appropriate for there to be violent retaliations, and that kind of demonstration in the wake of the murder of this pacifist and man of peace.[31]

White America killed Dr. King last night. She made it a whole lot easier for a whole lot of black people today. There no longer needs to be intellectual discussions, black people know that they have to get guns. White America will live to cry that she killed Dr. King last night. It would have been better if she had killed Rap Brown and/or Stokely Carmichael, but when she killed Dr. King, she lost.[31]

Despite the urging for calm by many leaders, a nationwide wave of riots erupted in more than 100 cities.[32] After the assassination, the city of Memphis quickly settled the strike on favorable terms to the sanitation workers.[33][34]

Reactions

Garment workers listen to the funeral service for Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., on a portable radio. April 9, 1968

On April 8, King's widow, Coretta Scott King, together with the couple's four small children, led a crowd estimated at 40,000 "in a silent march through the streets of Memphis to honor the fallen leader and support the cause of the city's black sanitation workers".[35]

The next day, funeral rites for King were held in his hometown of Atlanta, Georgia. The service at Ebenezer Baptist Church was nationally televised, as were these other events. A funeral procession transported King's body for 3.5 miles through the streets of Atlanta, followed by more than 100,000 mourners, from the church to his alma mater of Morehouse College. A second service was held there before the burial.[35]

In the wake of King's assassination, journalists reported some callous or hostile reactions from parts of white America, particularly in the South. David Halberstam, who reported on King's funeral, recounted a comment heard at an affluent white dinner party:

One of the wives—station wagon, three children, forty-five-thousand-dollar house—leaned over and said, "I wish you had spit in his face for me." It was a stunning moment; I wondered for a long time afterwards what King could possibly have done to her, in what conceivable way he could have threatened her, why this passionate hate.[36]

But reporters also recounted that many whites were grief-stricken at the leader's death. In some cases, the shock of events altered opinions. A survey later sent to a group of college trustees revealed that their opinions of King had risen after his assassination.[3]The New York Times praised King in an editorial, calling his murder a "national disaster" and his cause "just".[37][38]

Public figures generally praised King in the days following his death. Others expressed political ideology. GovernorGeorge Wallace of Alabama, known as a segregationist, described the assassination as a "senseless, regrettable act".[19] But GovernorLester Maddox of Georgia called King "an enemy of our country" and threatened to "personally raise" the state capitol flag back from half-staff. CaliforniaGovernorRonald Reagan described the assassination as "a great tragedy that began when we began compromising with law and order and people started choosing which laws they'd break". Strom Thurmond, South CarolinaSenator, wrote to his constituents: "We are now witnessing the whirlwind sowed years ago when some preachers and teachers began telling people that each man could be his own judge in his own case."[39]

FBI investigation

The Federal Bureau of Investigation was assigned the lead to investigate King's death. J. Edgar Hoover, who had previously made efforts to undermine King's reputation, told Johnson that his agency would attempt to find the culprit(s).[30] Many documents related to this investigation remain classified, and are slated to remain secret until 2027. In 2010, as in earlier years, some argued for passage of a proposed Records Collection Act, similar to a 1992 law concerning the Kennedy assassination, in order to require the immediate release of the records.[citation needed] The measure did not pass.

Funeral

President Lyndon B. Johnson declared April 7 a national day of mourning for Rev. King. A crowd of 300,000 attended his funeral two days later on April 9.[30] Vice President Hubert Humphrey attended on behalf of Johnson, who was at a meeting on the Vietnam War at Camp David. (There were fears that Johnson might be hit with protests and abuses over the war if he attended). At his widow's request, King's last sermon at Ebenezer Baptist Church was played at the funeral; it was a recording of his "Drum Major" sermon, given on February 4, 1968. In that sermon, he asked that at his funeral no mention of his awards and honors be made, but that it be said that he tried to "feed the hungry", "clothe the naked", "be right on the [Vietnam] war question", and "love and serve humanity".

James Earl Ray

Capture and guilty plea

The FBI investigation found fingerprints on various objects left in the bathroom from where the gunfire had come. Evidence included a Remington Gamemaster rifle from which at least one shot had been fired. The fingerprints were traced to an escaped white convict named James Earl Ray.[40] Two months after King's death, Ray was captured at London's Heathrow Airport while trying to leave the United Kingdom for either Angola, Rhodesia or South Africa[41] on a false Canadian passport in the name of Ramon George Sneyd.[42] Ray was quickly extradited to Tennessee and charged with King's murder.

He confessed to the assassination on March 10, 1969. On the advice of his attorneyPercy Foreman, Ray took a guilty plea to avoid a trial conviction and potential sentencing under the death penalty. Ray was sentenced to a 99-year prison term; he recanted his confession three days later.[43]

Ray fired Foreman as his attorney and claimed that a man he met in Montreal with the alias "Raul" was involved, as was Ray's brother Johnny, but that he was not. He said through his new attorney Jack Kershaw that although he did not "personally shoot King", he may have been "partially responsible without knowing it", hinting at a conspiracy. In May 1977, Kershaw presented evidence to the House Select Committee on Assassinations that he believed exonerated his client, but tests did not prove conclusive. Kershaw also claimed Ray was somewhere else when the shots were fired, but he could not find a witness to corroborate the claim.[44]

Ray worked for the remainder of his life attempting (unsuccessfully) to withdraw his guilty plea and secure a full trial. In 1997, Martin Luther King's son Dexter King met with Ray; he publicly supported Ray's efforts to obtain a retrial.[46]

Dr. William Pepper remained James Earl Ray's attorney until Ray's death. He carried on the effort to gain a trial on behalf of the King family. The King family does not believe that Ray was responsible, but that there was a conspiracy by elements of the government against King.[47]

Conspiracy theories

Loyd Jowers

In December 1993, Loyd Jowers, a white man from Memphis, appeared on ABC's Prime Time Live. He had gained attention by claiming an alleged conspiracy involving the Mafia, the U.S. government, and himself to kill King. According to Jowers, Ray was a scapegoat, and not directly involved in the shooting.

According to the Department of Justice, Jowers had inconsistently identified different people as Dr. King's assassin since 1993. He had alternatively claimed that the shooter was: (1) an African American man who was on South Main Street on the night of the assassination (the "Man on South Main Street"); (2) Raul; (3) a white "Lieutenant" with the Memphis Police Department; and (4) a person whom he did not recognize. The Department does not consider Jowers' accusations credible, and refers to two of the accused individuals by pseudonym.[note 1] DOJ has stated the evidence allegedly supporting the existence of a third assassin, "Raoul", is dubious.[48] Loyd had business interests in the vicinity of the assassination site.

Attorney William F. Pepper, representing the King family, presented evidence from 70 witnesses and 4,000 pages of transcripts. Pepper alleges in his book, An Act of State (2003), that the evidence implicated the FBI, the CIA, the US Army, the Memphis Police Department, and organized crime in the murder of Dr. King.[49] The suit alleged government involvement, however no government officials or agencies were named or made a party to the suit, so there was no defense or evidence presented or refuted by the government.[50] The jury found defendant Loyd Jowers and unknown co-defendants civilly liable for participation in a conspiracy to assassinate King in the amount of $100. Members of King's family acted as plaintiffs.[51]

Excerpt:

THE COURT: In answer to the question did Loyd Jowers participate in a conspiracy to do harm to Dr. Martin Luther King, your answer is yes. Do you also find that others, including governmental agencies, were parties to this conspiracy as alleged by the defendant? Your answer to that one is also yes. And the total amount of damages you find for the plaintiffs entitled to is one hundred dollars. Is that your verdict?

After hearing no evidence from the government, and only testimony and pleadings cooperatively submitted by the plaintiffs and Jowers, the jury—six blacks and six whites—found that King had been the victim of assassination by a conspiracy involving the Memphis police as well as federal agencies. Local assistant district attorney John Campell, who was not involved in the case, commented that the case was flawed and "overlooked so much contradictory evidence that never was presented".[52] This civil verdict against Jowers has been claimed by some persons to have established Ray's criminal innocence, which the King family has always maintained, but it has no bearing on his having pleaded guilty.[53][54][55] The family said it had requested only $100 in damages to demonstrate they were not seeking financial gain.

The tomb of Martin Luther King and Coretta Scott King, located on the grounds of the King Center in Atlanta

Counter evidence

In 2000, the Department of Justice completed their own investigation into Jowers' claims; it did not find evidence to support the allegations about conspiracy. The investigation report recommends no further investigation unless some new reliable facts are presented.[56] A sister of Jowers admitted that he had fabricated the story so he could make $300,000 from selling the story, and she said she had corroborated his story in order to get some money to pay her income tax.[57][58] King biographer David Garrow disagrees with William F. Pepper's claims that the government killed King. He is supported by author Gerald Posner.[59]

Other theories

In 1998, CBS reported that the two separate ballistic tests conducted on the Remington Gamemaster allegedly used by Ray in the assassination were inconclusive.[60][61] Moreover, witnesses with King at the moment of the shooting say the shot was fired from a different location; from behind thick shrubbery near the rooming house, and not from a window of the rooming house.[62]

King's friend and SCLC organizer, Reverend James Lawson, has suggested the impending occupation of Washington D.C. by the Poor People's Campaign was a primary motive for a federal assassination.[50] Lawson also noted during the civil trial that King alienated President Johnson and other powerful government actors when he repudiated the Vietnam War on April 4, 1967—exactly one year before the assassination.[53]

King had been targeted by COINTELPRO[63] and had also been under surveillance by military intelligence agencies during the period leading up to his assassination under the code name Operation Lantern Spike.[64]

A church minister, Ronald Denton Wilson, claimed his father, Henry Clay Wilson, assassinated Martin Luther King, Jr., not James Earl Ray.[65] He stated, "It wasn't a racist thing; he thought Martin Luther King was connected with communism, and he wanted to get him out of the way." But Wilson had reportedly admitted previously that his father was a member of the Ku Klux Klan.[66]

In 2004, Jesse Jackson, who was with King when he was assassinated, noted:

The fact is there were saboteurs to disrupt the march. [And] within our own organization, we found a very key person who was on the government payroll. So infiltration within, saboteurs from without and the press attacks. ...I will never believe that James Earl Ray had the motive, the money and the mobility to have done it himself. Our government was very involved in setting the stage for and I think the escape route for James Earl Ray.[67]

According to biographer Taylor Branch, King's friend and colleague James Bevel put it more bluntly: "There is no way a ten-cent white boy could develop a plan to kill a million-dollar black man".[68]